A/N – Thanks to my amazing beta, EdwardsFirstKiss, my leading ladies (you know who you are), my readers and especially to Stephenie Meyer, for creating this world we love to live in. This fandom is amazing and I am thrilled to be a part of it!
Disclaimer ~ Stephanie Meyers owns them all, I just have an overactive imagination.
Chapter 9 ~ The Prey
EPOV
The hallway was abuzz with people, some rushing to their first class of the day, others leaning on lockers, oblivious to the fact they would be late. Jessica was one of the latter. Her locker door hung open as she gazed lovingly at herself through the mirror inside. Once assured that she was still "fairest of them all" in her dream realm, she checked her make-up one last time. Jessica's beauty needed that power boost, unlike my Bella, whose natural loveliness made me ache each time I thought of her, which was a lot more often than I should.
As usual, people gave me a wide berth, moving closer to the lockers to avoid brushing into me. I emanated danger, which suited me fine, usually. It kept people from getting too close; asking too many questions. Attempting to repress some of that negative vibe and focus more on "dazzling" my prey, I peered at Jessica again, still engrossed in her reflection.
Excellent! Jessica is the perfect human prey for practice. Damned Bella and her silent thoughts; I wouldn't need to practice if I knew if I affected her the way she practically crippled me.
I approached quietly, turning on my most persuasive charm while leaning against the locker next to hers. "Hey Jessica," I drawled. Her heartbeat accelerated immediately as her eyes dilated. She licked her lips as her expression turned dazed and her gaze clouded. I guess I hadn't completely lost my touch.
OMG Edward Fucking Cullen. He is sooooo…
I guess that is about as dazzled as a girl can get. As her pulse raced, she gazed at me silently telling me I could ask for the stars and she would try to get them for me. Perfect! She was so befuddled she hadn't realized she had yet to respond. I kept eye contact, with a sedating smile still curving along my face.
"Everything ok?" I inquired, never taking my eyes off of her face.
"I…um… yeah." Jessica finally replied, still attempting to clear her besotted mind by shaking her head a bit. "Just great! So, did you have a good time at the party?"
He is way too gorgeous for his own good. Maybe he liked what he saw on Friday. I wish he would have said something before I ran off with Mike. Octopus-arms still didn't call me back! He told me he would call me Saturday. What adick!
Her facial expression turned sour as she realized he may never make that call. Obviously, Mike Newton had this girl's heart, along with other appendages, on a string for now. Not that I wouldn't make an acceptable replacement, she thought eagerly. I cringed inside as she started one of her favorite 'Edward Cullen fantasies'. She was a perverted little thing, into bondage and other forms of deviance.
Her fantasy never changed, not even the tiniest detail. She was incredibly unimaginative.
I yanked her into my arms roughly, pulling her in for a demanding kiss. Eagerly, she yanks my shirt over my head, licking her lips at the sight of my naked chest. I respond by pushing her backward toward her canopy bed, pinning her against it with my body. I grin evilly and rip her shirt open; buttons fly across the room like fireworks. As I fondle her shamelessly, I grab the white material draping over the top edges of the canopy and tie one of her hands to the post, partially limiting her movement. The next hand follows, then her feet. Now spread-eagle on the bed, Jessica licks her lips and motions me closer with her eyes…
Now if this were Bella's fantasy, I would be more than happy to…
What the hell am I thinking? I couldn't deny I would love to tie Bella down and have my way with her. I bit back a groan; my arousal announcing its arrival. I have groaned and growled so much in the past few days; I swear I sound like a wild animal.
Ok, perv boy, we were supposed to be practicing dazzling, remember? Not eavesdropping on whores and imagining fucking Bella in dirty yet pleasurable ways.
"The party was cool, I suppose, except for the near accident." I smoothly replied, interrupting her fantasy and catching her attention once again. "I wanted to ask you a quick favor if you don't mind," I whisper, my voice like a caress. She looked up and nodded quickly. This was working better than I had expected. I scrawled a note, folded it, and handed it to her. "Could you give this to Bella for me, please?" I knew she would deliver it ASAP, along with twenty questions about me and Friday night.
"A note? How sweet!" she giggled. "What's it says?" Edward fucking Cullen, passing notes. Unreal! Oh, I'll give it to her, alright, and find out what she has been holding out on me. Maybe he'll tire of her and look in my direction. I'm sure I could rouse his interest. I had Mike bursting at the seams last night; a little gentle for my taste, but he is super popular.
"It's personal," I confided. "I was hoping to ask her out for tonight; do think she would accept?" Jessica nodded quickly, almost automatically, while thinking any girl would have to be a fool to say no to me. I wished that was the case. One did not have to be a mind reader to notice that she was pissed off at me. "Thank you, Jessica; I appreciate your help."
Jessica looked wistfully at me, silently wishing the note was for her and not Bella. Hopefully, Bella will agree to meet me tonight. Jessica's help was the first step in getting all the pieces to fall into place. Plus, it had the added bonus of dazzling practice.
"Call me Jess, Edward. Everyone does." She smiled widely at me and giggled. "I'll make sure Bella gets the note." The bell rang for class, startling her. Realizing she was late; she waved a quick goodbye to me and ran down the hall; knowing she had just earned detention from Mr. Banner. I headed to Pre-Calculus, knowing that yet another potential "victim" was seated and ready for a little dazzling practice. Angela was Bella's other new "best friend". Unlike sleazy and superficial "Jess", Angela was sweet and caring. I almost felt guilty for practicing on her, but I needed to as much preparation as possible before seeing Bella at lunch, where the real dazzling would begin.
I slipped into class just as the teacher started taking roll call. She nodded to me as I sat down, noting that I was present for the day in her attendance book. "Sorry I am late Mrs. Martin," I said softly, as I opened my text. "I had car trouble this morning." A bald-faced lie, as I am sure she knew. But she just looked at me sweetly, a twinkle in her eyes.
"No problem, Edward. Just try to be on time from now on." As she smiled at me her heart rate quickened, a slight blush coming to her cheeks. Settle down Liz, he is way too young! What a charmer, though. If only I was forty years younger! I've never seen a boy that well put together before. Yummy! She stumbled forward, not paying attention to where she was walking. Her blush deepened, and she shook her head quickly, trying to clear my image from her mind. I chuckled as she continued taking roll. Before Bella, I had never paid attention to how much female interest I received. Now that I was attempting a less intimidating demeanor, girls and women alike were practically swooning over me.
If only Bella was swooning; you wouldn't have to dazzle her ass!
Well, thank you, Captain Obvious!
Angela Weber sat in her seat, completely oblivious to my presence. Instead, her mind was focused on her score on the quiz we had taken last week.
Mom will kill me if I don't get an A. Why didn't I study more Thursday night, instead of gossiping with Jess about what might happen at Friday's party? It isn't like the party did me any good. Guys avoid me like the plague. Maybe I need to act more like Jess. She gets all the guys' attention. Maybe I need a change, like contacts or a haircut?
She sighed, feeling dejected as well as invisible.
I leaned over and whispered, "Hey Angela, everything ok?" She was a sweet little thing, totally natural and normal. She was just on the nerdy side, which is why most guys steered clear of her. Maybe she would feel more confident wearing contacts. The huge frames on her face blurred her eyes to the world, making them appear tiny behind the prescription lens.
Angela peeked at me, and her mouth dropped open, creating a small O. After blinking a few times, making sure she wasn't dreaming apparently, she snapped her mouth shut and then stuttered a response, "Um… hey Edward… yeah…. I'm fine. Just worried about my quiz score. My mom freaks out if I don't get straight A's." Her look turned perplexed, as if she wasn't sure why she offered me that information. She shook her head as Jessica had done, attempting to clear it.
Apparently, head shaking is a sure sign of a successful dazzle, I mused.
Edward Cullen is talking to me… ME! OMG, I can't believe this! I wonder… well I know he left the party with his family and Bella, maybe he is trying to win over her friends? He wouldn't be interested in me; I am way too boring and nerdy for him. If he was…OMG I could just die!
She had no idea how accurate she was. Die indeed! I almost wanted to laugh but held it back. "I am sure you did just fine. You are an excellent student." I assured her.
"I hate to bother you, but would you be willing to do me a favor?" Her response was a dazed nod, just like Jessica's. Just perfect! "I want to ask Bella out, but I am not too sure how receptive she'll be. Would you mind asking her what she thinks of me?" I grinned in an attempt to continually dazzle; her eyes still locked onto mine. She gulped and nodded.
He likes Bella! OMG, I can't wait to tell her about this! Although I know what she'll say, you would have to be blind not to be attracted to Edward Cullen!
This impulse plan of mine was pure genius! This way I could get dibs on what she is thinking, without being able to read Bella's mind. I can simply eavesdrop on them through Angela's open and polite viewpoint. I wondered when Angela would see Bella next, hoping it was before lunch. I would have to make a fashionably late entrance and give the girls time to "chat".
Mrs. Martin had noticed the byplay between us and cleared her throat to get our attention. Angela buried her nose into her textbook to hide the blush creeping to her cheeks. She was a very pretty girl, hiding behind unfashionably large glasses and bad taste in clothing. I looked quickly at the teacher and pretended to be reading my book, thinking of how I could thank Angela for what I knew would be a great deal of help in my quest for Bella tonight.
Maybe I can convince Alice to give her a makeover, so I can thank her silently for her help.
Alice loved makeovers, and she seemed keen on Bella becoming her "sister". Because of that, I was sure she would be happy to help, probably already had a vision of her repaying Angela in exactly that way. Knowing Alice, she would be giddy to help make someone pretty! Alice had a childlike personality at times partially stemming from her lack of memory of being a child, I think.
The rest of the morning went so slowly, it seemed like it was moving backward. I ached to see Bella and spent the rest of the morning looking for her, through the minds of everyone around her. Unfortunately, the only person in her morning classes was good old Mike. Fuck me! He focused on Bella though, so I could stalk her from someone else's minds for the moment. At least, I could if I could handle listening to his thoughts while I do it. Currently, his thoughts were pretty G rated; he was just mulling ideas over on how to ask her out in his mind.
Never gonna happen, Mikey boy! I'll give in to my baser desires and lock her up first!
I tried to ignore him and focused on Bella instead. She was daydreaming; I could tell by the way she gazed quietly out the window at the droplets of rain streaming down the glass. I would have given anything to be able to read her thoughts at this exact moment. Her expression was wistful, and she had a rosy glow to her cheeks. She tapped her pen against her lips rhythmically, then placed the tip in her mouth and sucked on it for a few seconds. Although an innocent enough gesture to most, both Mike's and my minds followed the same path, both thinking of her lips taking something else in her mouth instead of that pen. A low groan escaped my lips before I could stop it, making the teacher look up in surprise.
"Edward? Are you alright?" she questioned, concern evident on her face.
"Yes, Ma'am. Just fine." I assured her.
Yes, Mrs. Martin. I'm just fine. You could hang a flag on my dick, but other than that things are just fucking peachy!
Bella was unknowingly turning me into a raging sex fiend. If I didn't get some private time with the girl soon, I may decide to give in to the demon and let him have his wicked way with her!
End Note: thoughts? Opinions? Let me know! I treasure your feedback! So many great WIPs and completed fics by BitterHarpy, Alyscia, MissLiss15, PearlyFox, EdwardandBellaBelong2gether, KrazyK85, Maplestyle, and MarieCarro: check them out when you can!